Venetian blind



J. CAHILL.

VENETIAN BLIND.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1.1. 1916.

1 42,527, Patented J une 8, 1920.

. 3 SHhETS-SHEET I.

J. CAHILL. VENEIIAN BLIND.

M' PLICATION FILED JUNE H. 1916.

Patented June 8, 1920.

'3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

2 Rig-9.

1" a l I 4 I l 9 atto'nuu J. CAHIL'L.

V ENETIAN BLIND.- I I APPLICATION HLED' JUNE 17, 1916. 1,342,527. I V

Elwuewfoz Patented June 8,1920,

3 SHEElS-SHEET 3 wiwwo PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN GAHILL, OF NORFOLK, VIRGINIA.

VENETIAN BLIND.

Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Venetian Blinds, of which the following is a specification.

. One of the principal objects is to provide a Venetian blind the slats of which may be completely closed to the end that water may not enter and to insure complete privacy thereby making the blind desirable for sleeping porches and bed-rooms. 2 Another object is to obviate the very common annoyance of rattling of the slats.

Another object is to provide a blind the slats of which. are not bound together or threaded by cords, ribbons, wires, or other connecting devices designed to pass through openings punched or otherwise-formed in the slats; and which are entirely independent of the cords or other lifting instrumentalities, whereby any one or more of the slats may be removed and replaced, if necessary, without disturbing the assemblage of the others.

. Another object is to provide slat bodies which are intact or have no holes punched in them so that thinner, yet stronger, slats may be employed, whereby the weight of the blind is considerably reduced and the blind may be raised and lowered with ease and facility.

Another object is to provide side casings, ways or channels for the slat trunnions, and channel locks for locking thetrunnions as a unit.

Another object is to provide for guiding the lifting cords or ribbons in the side channels or grooves that accommodate the slattrunnions and out of contact with the latter, and to provide holders adapted to prevent fraying of the cord ends.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 8, 1920.

- Application filed June 17, 1916. Serial No. 104,311.

' cooperation with the blind operating devices.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be referred to in the following description in connection with the annexed drawings, wherein 'Flgure lis an elevation, partly in section, of a Venetian blind embodying features of my nventlon. r Fig. 2 is a top or plan View of the top bar and of the angularly disposed sheaves or fairleads, which guide the lifting cords in respect to the winding roller.

Fig. 3 is a detail showing the general structure and .arrangement of one of the side caslngs or channels, its complemental lock, a slat trunnion and lifting cord.

F g. 4 is a section on line 4. -4: of Fig. 1. r F g. 5 1s a section on line 55 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a section of the blind, more especially showing the slip or double step provision, and one of the cord holders.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view showing thesating mechanisms for use with heavy duty blinds.

Fig.- 10 is an elevational view of a' blind equipped with lifting tapes or ribbons; and

Flg. 11 is a section on line 1111 of Fig. 10;

A indicates a blind or lattice structure composed of a plurality of slats 1 with intact or non-apertured-bodies terminating at each end in trunnions 2, which are capable of rocking movement and also sliding movement in grooves or guide-ways 3 formed in or provided by the side frames, supports, or casings 4c. The slats are arranged in .parallelism and as usual may be shifted on their axes to perform the usual functions. The fact that they are not punched or slot-ted and have no connecting or tie cords, chains or wires, and hence present no obstructions, enables the slats to completely close upon one another, thereby not only insuring privacy, but also providing a water shedding or rainproof structure, which manifestly increases the scope of usefulness of blinds of this character and adaptsthem to sleeping porches and the like.

5 are locks of which there is one for each side casing or trunnion guide and which range the length of the way or groove 3, and, when actuated, bear upon all of the trunnions simultaneously and prevent vlbration or rattling thereof such as is generally caused by wind pressure. For illustrative purposes,

the locks are shown in the form of angle bars in that they are provided with double steps 11 and 12, which constitute the sole interlocking connection between the slats. The steps are flexible elements generally of the same material or fabric as the tapes 10, are woven or incorporated with said tapes, and constitute slip or loop connections for the slats whereby the latter may be readily removed and replaced if necessary, or desirable. The steps are so arranged one above and the other below the individual slats that the latter are maintained in uniform registry and are positively responsive to movements of the tilting or turning element. This structure and arrangement is best illustrated in Fig. 6. I j

The bottom bar 13 of the blind is provided atits ends with cord holders 14, best shown in Fig. 6. These holders are stamped from sheet metal, have a tubular part 15 to engage the trunnion or bar extension 16, a bearing lug 17 secured to the underside of the bar, and an offset eye 18 in which is secured the knotted end of the respective cords 19 and 20. The described device serves to securely hold the cords and prevents them from fraying.

The cords 19 and 20 travel in recesses 21 in the side members to one side of and out of contact with the slat trunnions, (Fig. 3) and finally pass over sheaves or guide pulleys 22 and 23 to the winding roller.

The sheaves 22 and 23, of which there is a pair for each of the cords 19 and 20, are operatively mounted in a top or cross bar 24. The latter is provided at its ends with pendent brackets or hangers 25 in which are mounted the cord-winding roller 26 and below it the usual tilting or rocking bar 27, carrying the ladder tapes 10 and the tilting cord or cords 28 and 29.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 1, the roller 26 is formed with journal recesses 30 and 31 to receive the studs or journals 32 and 33, one of which is threaded and engages a correspondingly threaded nut 34 carried by the roller. The roller is shorter than the ig. 4. Obviously, the bearing "distance from bracket to bracket by substantially the length of one of the studs, and through the medium of the threaded stud and nut is susceptible of lateral movement, that is to say a movement in the direction of its axis back and forth, according to how it is rotated. The pitch of the thread is equal to the thickness of the cords 19 and 20 so that said cords, which of course are secured to said roller, when winding or unwinding will be in perpendicular lines from the sheaves 23 to the roller.

The pull-up cord 35 is secured to and winds on the roller and when pressure is applied it unwinds and causes the roller to turn and to travel on the threaded stud 'or journal 32. In Fig. 1 the blind is shown completelylowered with the pull-up cord 35 wound upon the roller and the lifting cords 19 and 20 unwound in respect thereof.

Evidently a pull on the cord 35 will cause the bottom bar to move upward and completely close the slats by reason of'the absence of intermediate projections or obstructions, that is to say the slats will be picked up in nested or directly abutting relation.

In the modification, Figs. 8, 9 and 10, which is intended for heavy duty blinds, the same slat structure and arrangement of side casings prevails, but a different lifting arrangement is provided. Fig. 8 shows a single tape and Fig. 9 shows a double tape.

Both the single tape 36 and the double tape 37 may be metal or other tapes or ribbons. As the tapes or ribbons run over sheaves or pulleys 38 and 39 at the ends of the roller 40, the latter of course requires no lateral move ment as in the case of the cords running over the angularly disposed fairleads. The lower ends of the lifting tapes are sustained by compensating pulleys or rollers 41 mounted for the opening above the tilting bar and because it may also be provided with an eye 46,

which constitutes a guide for the pull-up cord and holds the same away from the tilting bar.

Having described the nature of the invention, I claim 1. In a Venetian blind, the combination of tilting and lifting bars, a series of intermediate slats supported relatively to said bars so that when lifted they will be picked up in nested or directly abutting relation, side casand objects ings constituting guides for said slats and bars, a cord winding roller, compensating rollers on the lifting bar, and cords extending through the side casingsand operatively disposed with relation to the winding and compensating rollers.

2. In a Venetian blind, the combination of a tilting bar, a bottom bar, slats intermediate said bars, ladder tapes connecting said bars and in direct contact with the side edges of the slats and having integral cross tapes .which constitute slip connections for the slats whereby one or more of the latter may be removed for replacement purposes without disturbing the assemblage of the others, and complemental operating accessories.

3. In a Venetian blind, the combination of tilting and lifting bars, a series of intermediate slats supported relatively to said bars so that when lifted they will be picked up in nested or directly abutting relation, side casings constituting guides for said slats and bars and having provision for locking said slats as a unit, a cord winding roller, compensating rollers on the ends of the lifting bar, and cords extending through the side casings and operatively disposed with relation to the winding and compensating rollers.

4. In a Venetian blind, the combination with the slats, bottom bar, tilting bar, and their connecting devices, of side casings to receive the trunnions, an operating roller, and lifting means extending therefrom through the casings to the bottom bar and mounted in the casings to one side of the slat ends, whereby the cords are held free of contact with the slats in operation.

7. In a Venetian blind, a lattice structure composed of imperforate slats supported by ladder tapes with double steps constituting slip connections for the slats, a tilting bar and a bottom bar to which the ladder tapes are connected, side casings to receive the ends of the slats and of the bottom bar, compensating rollers on the ends of the bottom bar, an operating roller, and lifting provisions traversing the side casings out of contact with the slats and connecting the op erating and compensating rollers.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

- JOHN GAHILL. Witnesses:

T. B. KIGHT, L. S. PIERCE. 

